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Repairs keep needy seniors in their homes

View SlideshowRequest to buy this photoChris Russell | DispatchThe Franklin County Office on Aging’s minor-home-repair program did about $4,000 worth of work to Stanford Carter’s East Side home, including installing these handrails.

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When Stanford Carter’s furnace broke one brisk day in October, he didn’t know where he was going
to come up with the cash to fix it.

Carter, 64, of the East Side, spends more than three-quarters of his retirement benefits and pay
from a part-time job as a barber on his monthly house payment and utilities.

That leaves the Vietnam War veteran with barely enough to cover food, gasoline and other
necessities. The last thing Carter needed to worry about was a pricey repair to his modest
63-year-old house that has more than started showing its age.

Carter might still be without heat if a local agency hadn’t directed him to the Franklin County
Office on Aging’s minor-home-repair program. The group helped nearly 1,400 senior citizens last
year, including 565 older than 75, so they could stay in their homes.

“It has taken a lot off my mind, and I don’t have to worry anymore,” he said. “It’s given me
peace of mind.”

Providing minor home repairs is one of the easiest ways to keep older people living
independently, experts say. However, demand for such programs often surpasses what groups are able
to provide, and money remains limited.

The U.S. has at least 13 million low-income households of people age 50 or older living in
unaffordable or inadequate housing, the AARP Foundation says.

The foundation awarded $780,000 to four groups last year to repair and add safety features to
1,179 homes across the country, including some in Ohio, with the hope of showing other groups that
the work can pay big dividends.

Instead of just getting his furnace fixed, Carter received close to $4,000 worth of safety
repairs, including new steps, a sidewalk, a handicap toilet and handrails, and grab bars in his
home. Half the money came from the Franklin County Veterans Service Commission and the other half
from the Office on Aging, which uses money from its five-year property-tax levy.

Some other central Ohio programs offer a maximum of $1,000 in repairs. Yet even the lower amount
can have a huge impact, said Chuck Gehring, the president and CEO of LifeCare Alliance, who said
that about 70 percent of the people his agency helps live on less than $1,000 a month in Social
Security.

“We’re not doing Eagle Specialty kitchen remodels for $100 grand, but necessary, safety-related
repairs and improvements that are essential to these seniors’ lives,” he said.

LifeCare’s typical job ranges from $700 to $1,000, Gehring said.

Until the work was done, Carter, who has severe arthritis, had difficulty getting down his
basement stairs to reach his washer and dryer. Now, because of handrails, he can move more freely
about his house.

Another benefit is that senior citizens don’t have to worry about falling victim to fly-by-night
contractors who take their money and run, said Brenda Coulson, who manages the Office on Aging
program. “We employ licensed, bonded and insured professionals, many of whom have been with us for
more than 20 years,” she said. “And they sincerely care about the living condition of these
struggling seniors.”

Because the elderly live in some of the oldest houses in the country, letting maintenance
problems pile up can put their health at risk, many said.

“I’ve seen people doing some very dangerous things to get by,” said Cindy Farson, the director
of the Central Ohio Area Agency on Aging, which provides home repair through one of its
programs.

Carter broke the handles of two storm doors on his house while using them to steady himself as
he climbed up and down the steps of his front and back porches.

“He’s a lucky man. One bad fall could have landed him into a nursing home or assisted-living
facility,” Coulson said. “That’s the kind of thing we want to prevent.”